Abstract:

The nature of South African society complicates the implementation of a code of practice which has a primary objective the elimination of separate development. The study was undertaken to provide a critical view of this code, the Sullivan code, as applied in the Elektrode Maatskappy van Suid-Afrika (EMSA). It was found that the Sullivan code is not universally accepted within the target company. Generally, whites are more negative inclined than blacks. There is a direct relationship between the political association of the employees and their acceptance or rejection of the code. Employees who associate with the more conservative parties have a negative perception. It was also found that employees in technical (artisan) and supervisory (foremen) job categories are more negative than any other category. A possible explanation is that these employees feel threatened, since normally non-whites are promoted more readily into these jobs than, for instance, to management positions. The code is not a guarantee of equal opportunity in society. In the work environment it enhances the implementation of equal employment practices, but in society at large its impact is largely notable for improving living standards of non-whites and not for abolishing separate development. Both race groups consider the most important advantages of the code as promoting equal pay for equal work, and equal opportunities for whites and non-whites.